Exposed

David Sadgrove, 61, shouted “you are a terrorist” at Mrs Saltana, who was with her two-year-old child, in November last year
A Woking man has been fined more than £350 for shouting ‘you are a terrorist’ at a Muslim woman in the wake of the Paris attacks.

David Sadgrove, of Courtenay Road, pleaded guilty to two counts of racially aggravated harassment at a hearing at Guildford Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday (January 19).

The 61-year-old man was arrested on November 15 after he asked Zamurd Saltana to move her car, which was parked on the pavement near his home, and became abusive.

Mrs Saltana was visiting someone in the street and had a two-year-old child with her.

Prosecuting, Johnson Shittu said: “She had just parked her car on Courtney Road when Mr Sadgrove had approached her and he asked her if she was a Muslim and if she was religious.

“He started to become abusive and aggressive.”

Mr Shittu said Sadgrove had sworn at Mrs Sultana and said: “‘You have killed so many people in Paris’”.

“It was clearly petrifying,” he said.

The court heard that two other men heard the noise as Sadgrove continued to shout: “You are a terrorist, you are going to blow someone up.”

Defending Sadgrove, Trudi Levico said the attacks in Paris provided context to the offence and that the defendant had a ‘myriad of problems’, caused by chronic arthritis in his hip and knee and was aided by a walking stick.

“He was on the pavement and he couldn’t get past those vehicles,” Mrs Levico said.

“He says he starts a relatively civil conversation about moving it.

“He has had problems on that stretch of the road before, it must be one whereby vehicles in order to free the road up park on the pavement.”

Once Sadgrove became abusive, two men living in the street came outside, including Parvaiz Mohammad, who Sadgrove also verbally abused.

Mrs Levico argued that Mrs Sultana did not state she was ‘petrified’.

“She says in her statement that when the two males come out he makes various comments to them,” she said.

“One of the males said to him to ‘try it’ and see what they would do to him.

“She told them to not talk to the English man like that.

“[The statement] said, ‘he was an old man and he looks ill to me’”.

The bench heard that Sadgrove had previous convictions in 2011 and 2003 but did not have a ‘pattern’ of offending.

He is a recipient of the disability living allowance and other benefits while waiting for an operation and was deemed ‘unfit’ for unpaid work for the offence.

Sentencing Sadgrove to a fine of £382, chair of the bench Mrs Lesley Shanks said the racial element to his offence had increased his debt.

“You were swearing and those offences did happen in front of a two-year-old child,” she said.